


Some Princes Don't Become Kings

by Hads4life



Category: Minecraft diaries - Fandom, aphmau - Fandom
Genre: And I almost forgot the most important one, Angst, Buckle up folks, Enemies to Lovers, Gender Non-Conforming Character, If Anything Else Needs Tagging Tell Me, Kissing, M/M, Major Character Injury, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Past Injury, Possible Stockholm Syndrome, Slow Burn, Social Anxiety, Undiagnosed Mental Disorders, Zane And Travis Have Fucked Up Families, and a lot of it, because fuck if anyone knew what those were back then, heart problems, there's also a couple guards but they're not really named so
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-08-23
Updated: 2019-09-29
Packaged: 2020-09-24 10:07:39
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 9,183
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20356705
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hads4life/pseuds/Hads4life
Summary: “You know, some would say a demon and a priest sharing a room is a little... weird,” Travis mused as the sun’s last few rays left his vision.“Some would also say that a high priest taking a demon prisoner instead of just killing him is weird.” Zane’s cold tone seemed to make the room just a little chillier.“...point made.”Travis is the son of the Demon Warlock. For as much of his life as he can remember, he’s lived on an island, defending a tribe that hate him from a father that never cared.And one day, things somehow get ten times worse.Suddenly, he’s being held prisoner by O’khasis’ high priest, chained up far away from his home and everything he knows. His captor insists on keeping him there, but Travis isn’t exactly willing- even as he watches the high priest come out of his shell towards him.He knows that he has to escape. But as the two grow closer and closer, a question becomes increasingly prevalent in his mind-Could two beings so different in seemingly every way actually have more in common than at first glance?





	1. Was Burning Down My Forest Really Necessary?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Travis wakes up one morning to a noticeably more on fire island, and wakes up not too long after in a town with a weird priest.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! This is my first entry into the world of Aphmau fan fiction! (Disregarding a Wait For Me lyric fic thing that I never finished,,, one day, angsty Garroth.) I’m a huge Zanvis fan, especially in the context of MCD, but there’s little-to-no content for it, which kind of sucks. So I made my own! After all, what else is fan fiction for?
> 
> This fic is mainly inspired by two things, both of which I personally recommend checking out:  
1: The (currently) two MCD Zanvis fics written by Cakeenkets. I absolutely love them both, and you’ll see inspirations from both of them in this fic. Absolutely wonderful writing, I cannot recommend checking them both out enough! And hey, maybe check out the author's other stuff too? They've got some pretty nifty fics if I do say so.  
2: Fall Out Boy’s entire album M A N I A. It’s just. It’s a Zanvis mood and has been really helpful in writing this. The main songs I’ve used as inspiration are Stay Frosty Royal Milk Tea (see: the title of the fic and the rest of the lyrics too really), HOLD ME TIGHT OR DON’T (see: the lyric ‘confidantes but never friends’ and also just the general vibe of the song), The Last of the Real Ones (see: mainly just themes) and Church (see: the emphasis on the demon/priest thing because goddamn if that isn’t fun to reference in-fic). If you listen to music while reading fanfics, this is a pretty good choice for this one.
> 
> I’d also like to warn before you read, in case you didn’t read the tags properly, that this fanfiction contains a plot that could be interpreted as Stockholm Syndrome, a variety of mental disorders, medical conditions, sexualities, and other such things that generally go unnamed (because, you know, medieval setting), and a probable bit of NSFW as we approach the end. I’ll leave warnings for the NSFW when we get there, as well as anything else that needs it. Feel free to skip any chapters you have to, I’ll do a summarisation in the next chapter’s notes.
> 
> And I think that’s it! Welcome, friends, to Some Princes Don’t Become Kings. Strap on in, it’s (hopefully) going to be a long one.

The smell of smoke was what pulled him from sleep.

Travis’ eyes snapped open as the scent crept into his small home, still bleary from the night’s rest. He clambered out of his bed with a frown. The smell was disgusting, and he could feel it clinging to his hair and the fabric of his clothes already. Someone from the tribe must have lit a bonfire or something… He gave a soft yawn and peered out of his window. The stars were still out, sparkling gems in the sky, but that wasn’t what drew Travis’ attention. Rather, his focus followed the wall of smoke and flame dancing in front of him. He stumbled his way over to the door and left his home, tired eyes growing wide at the sight.

The forest was burning.  
Flames burst up from the trees and smoke drifted up from the branches, the whole island seemingly turned into an inferno. Oranges and reds painted over the usual whites and greens, and he could almost feel the smoke in his skin. Worst of all, the wind was blowing in his face, and so the flames were approaching him too.

Suddenly, he didn’t feel tired any more.

Panic surged him as his head jolted this way and that, frantically searching for an area of the island that wasn’t illuminated that he could escape through… and found nothing. The fire had formed a ring around him and his mountain, and was creeping up towards him from every direction. He rushed back inside, gathering as many supplies as he could, searching for anything that could put out the flames… but, as he shoved the last few rations into his bag and forced his sword into its holster, it was clear this was all he had. Some food, a weapon, and one or two changes of clothing. Nothing that could fix this. His only choice was to go through it, and hope he came out the other side. He scrambled down the rocks and snow surrounding him, the cold against his skin only serving to remind him of the heat surrounding him. Maybe… maybe this was the demon warlock’s doing, a trick of some kind, and he’d just have to find him and fight him again? It wasn’t an ideal situation, but if it was what had to be done…

“FIND THE SON OF THE DEMON WARLOCK!” A loud, commanding voice, seeming to travel the whole island with a sharp conviction. There were a few more inintelligible yells, and the sounds of lots of people moving.  
Travis’ heart dropped. No, that couldn’t be the Demon Warlock, Travis was sure of it- it was somehow worse. Someone- or rather, many people- had found their way onto the island.

And they were after him.

His heart thudded against his ribcage as he skidded down the mountain, snow cushioning his stumbled falls only slightly. The rocks around him scraped against his skin as he made his way down, focus darting all around in search of the people he’d heard- and they weren’t hard to spot, in the end. A small group of them, trekking up the hill with swords and bows drawn. Armour, shields, weapons- they seemed prepared for this, except for one thing. They didn’t look warm at all, and Travis barely suppressed a chuckle as he saw one tug on the shoulder of the one in front of them and point at the snow with, as far as he could see from this distance, chattering teeth and a bitter expression. It was arguably less funny when the two, along with most of the soldiers with them, moved into the house, with a few staying behind and keeping lookout around the house. A few minutes passed as Travis waited with bated breath- what if they found something in there, something important or powerful- and then they exited, hands empty. Relief washed over him-  
Which quickly snapped to terror as one lit the other’s torch.

No.

The torch was placed up against the walls of his home, soon followed by others until the flames crept up the wood and the building was nothing but a pillar of fire. Travis’ breath hitched and he felt a sob build up in his throat as the soldiers returned down the mountain. No, no no no, that was his home, that was all he had on this godforsaken island, they couldn’t just-!

No. He had no time to waste on that. His life was infinitely more valuable to him than his house. He took one last glance at the climbing flames, then wrenched his attention away and continued his descent. The world was spinning, flames twisting up and out of the forest he was headed straight for. He almost hoped there was a shorter way, one he’d spot out of the corner of his eye that he could reach safety faster with…  
But as the flames grew ever-closer, that was clearly not the case. He pulled his shirt up and over his nose and mouth, muttering a faint prayer to Enki, and pushed on into the flames.

He felt his body stumbling through the forest, eyes stinging from the ash and smoke blanketing the island. The twigs that had been strewn on the forest floor glowed a bright orange, the fire at his feet creeping up his trousers and burning into his legs. But he had to keep running. The island wasn’t big, he could make it to the water, and then… well, he’d think of something then. His legs continued to move almost on their own as he focused on keeping his breath, praying the smoke wouldn’t take him before he could escape as he sprinted between the flaming trees-

And straight into a man.

Travis felt his body collapse underneath him at the impact, sending him crashing to the floor as he looked up at the man. He was tall, a lot taller than Travis, and his clothes were a bright white, despite the smoke. The lower part of his face was covered, as was one of his eyes- and the only one that remained visible was staring down at him in shock and triumph.  
“HE’S HERE!” That same voice, filled with purpose, and a determination almost unrivalled in anything Travis had ever seen. “CAPTURE HIM!”

And with that, armoured soldiers emerged from the trees and attacked. Swords and arrows from all directions, hands on him to force him down, nets enveloping his form; his cries did nothing to shake off the onslaught against him. He writhed and fought against the hands and ropes, grabbing for any sort of hold or way of escape, but it did nothing to shake the binds on him-

And then a thud, and he was out cold.

~~~~~~~~~~

When he came to, he could barely open his eyes. Everything felt fuzzy, and he couldn’t feel his body beyond a faint tingle. He gave a soft groan as he forced his eyes open for barely a moment, though they soon fell closed again. God, whatever he got hit with, it was doing its job- whoever did that needed a raise...

“Awaken.”  
A voice called out to him, seeming to come from all around him and yet nowhere. The call was faint, and almost sounded like it was underwater, and-  
“AWAKEN!”

A sharp slap forced his eyes wide open, and he reeled back as the blinding light and aching pain hit him all at once. He was… in a building, one he’d never seen before, wooden panels forming the walls and floor, with a large glass window in front of him. In front of that was what looked like a throne- but a simple one, not one a monarch would actually use. And sat in that throne was…  
That man. The one he’d run into.

The one who’d given the command.

His hand shot to where his sword had been, revealing two things to him- there were chains around his wrists, and his sword was gone. A low growl left his mouth as he turned his gaze back to the man on the throne, who was staring at him in.. annoyance? And not directly at him, at…  
“Was it really necessary to hit him in order to wake him? He was already coming to.” The man’s voice cut through the room, and the guard that had, evidently, slapped Travis got to his feet.  
“It seemed the most efficient method-”  
“He was already awake. The most efficient method would have been to let him stir himself. Now, if you don’t mind…” He raised his hand, indicating towards the door.  
“But sir-!”  
“Go. I wish to speak with him myself.”  
The guard seemed to hesitate, then make his way out of the room.

As the guard left, Travis took the opportunity to get a proper look at the man in the throne. He was clearly nobility of some sort; his clothing was elegant and detailed, and the cross on his chest indicated a man of faith. He also had a small dagger in a sheath around his torso, the strap arcing up and over his shoulder. The majority of his face was still hidden by his hair and mask, and his eye was a light blue, and had a glare that was cold and observant.

“So.” The man’s voice seemed to grow less sharp as he addressed Travis. “I’ve been told that you’re a man of great prowess. May I ask your name?”  
“Let me out of these chains and maybe,” Travis shot back, half-tempted to spit at the man.  
“Now, now, there’s no need to be like that.” A mocking tone crept into the man’s speech as he stared Travis down. “If it helps, I’ll introduce myself first- Zane Ro’Meave, High Priest and second son to the Lord of O’khasis.”  
A priest, huh? Something about that felt targeted. “...Travis.”  
“Travis...” Zane seemed to mull over the name for a moment, muttering it to himself once or twice before continuing. “And you are, indeed, the son of the Demon Warlock we were told of?”  
“That’s me.”  
“Delightful.” Zane’s tone had no delight in it whatsoever. “You’ll be staying here for a while, Travis. In O’khasis.”  
Travis fought to keep his smug smile on his face. “No can do, High Priest. I have a job to do back on my island- I’ve been defending those people for years, they can’t-”

“They sold you out, you know.”  
Zane cut Travis off with a ruthless precision, telling him something that, deep down, he’d already known.  
“The tribe inhabiting your island. Once we said what we were there for, they told us of you and led us right to you and your forest. Said they were glad to see you go. Even permitted us to burn the whole forest down if it meant getting rid of you.”  
The pang in Travis’ heart grew into a throbbing pain. He wasn’t surprised, no- those people didn’t know he was protecting them, and what he was protecting them from. They saw him as a demon, one that could only hurt them. But the idea that they were so ready to throw him to whichever power-hungry madman showed up first...  
“...that doesn’t matter to me. I was protecting them- that’s what matters.”  
“A moral man- I see.” There was a hint of interest to Zane’s voice, a form of curiosity Travis wasn’t sure of his feelings on. “I’m glad to hear it. We might just get along, you and I.”  
It was then that Travis spat at him. It didn’t get close- it was at least a foot away from the priest- but Zane did seem to take note of it, sitting up in his chair slightly. “...oh, this will be interesting.” He got up from his throne and walked around Travis, instead approaching the door and opening it for the guard outside. “He’ll stay in the dungeons. Ensure there is a constant eye on him.” He waved an arm out in Travis’ direction, and as he turned slightly, the two locked eyes.

“He has a fire in him that I wish to observe further.”

“A-About that, sir,” the guard stammered out, focus darting between Zane and Travis. “The dungeons are currently… full.”  
Zane’s expression was hard to read, but it certainly changed upon hearing that. His gaze turned to the guard. What was he-  
“The dungeons are… full.” Ah, there it was. Cold anger.  
The guard could clearly hear it too. “Y-yes… I’m afraid that we have no more space for him.”  
“Damn, you imprison that many people?” Travis couldn’t help but chime in- anything to spite his captor. He smirked, and added with a hint of mock sadness, “I thought I was special.”  
“Hush.” Zane tilted his head in Travis’ direction, but didn’t seem to be all too angry at his comment- only the situation. “It’s of no concern to me. We can hold him elsewhere, correct? I’d like to keep an eye on him.”  
“I- Sir, that’s absurd! We absolutely cannot keep him in your quarters, he-”  
“Absurd? Excuse me, did I stutter? Do I need to repeat myself to you?” Zane’s voice cut through the protests of the guard, who fell silent. “He will stay with me. I’m sure he won’t complain,” he added, turning to Travis, “will you?”  
Travis gave his chains a gentle shake as he shook his head. “A demon like me, in the high priest’s sleeping quarters? It’s where I belong.” He gave Zane a wink, smirking up at him.  
The priest turned his head away, to the point where Travis could only see his hair and mask. “Very well. We may have to make some adjustments, but I’m sure it can be made to work.”

~~~~~~~~~~

Travis couldn’t help but gape as the doors opened. This place felt like a prince’s room! Reds, golds, whites and blacks made up the room’s colour scheme, and it was larger than Travis’ whole house. A large four-poster bed was off in an alcove to the left, and opposite that there was a large and comfy-looking chair. Next to that, an ornate desk, and a large fireplace that seemed more at home in a one-room house with the amount of heat it could probably generate. The wall beside the alcove was lined with bookshelves, with a door in a small gap between them, leading to… were those private bathing quarters?! Wow. A large window was directly ahead of him, seeming to overlook most of O’khasis and the scenic lands beyond, and as he stepped onto the carpet, he could almost feel himself sinking into it. Man, this was pretty neat. People should fill up dungeons more often.  
...well, they shouldn’t, it was bad practice if not horribly disturbing, but still.

“Guess I’m sleeping on the floor?” The singular bed was a bit of a dead giveaway- the priest would never allow that, Travis knew that even from their sparing interactions. “Any sort of bedding, or should I get comfy on the carpet?”  
“You can have the chair,” Zane replied as he entered, the guard tugging Travis along with him. The guard nodded and pulled Travis over to the chair, the chains clanking and pulling against his joints as he gave a soft cry-  
“He can walk just fine, no need to drag. It’s not his fault that the dungeons are full.” Zane’s voice had a certain annoyance to it, and… perhaps pity, albeit an odd form of it. The guard murmured an apology and slowed down, allowing Travis to keep pace. Man, this guy was weird- though Travis wasn’t complaining. He was being strangely accommodating for a kidnapper, something that, while odd, wasn’t unwelcome. 

Soon, Travis was chained up to the chair, with just enough freedom to adjust his position and stand up- though not walk anywhere. The priest had given a satisfied nod as he tested the binds, and Travis was also fairly pleased with them; the freedom to stand meant he had startled Zane as he first approached to check. That had to be a bonus. He had a blanket, too, and a rather nice one. This wasn’t as bad as he’d expected.

“You’re free to go,” Zane told the guard as he walked away from Travis, “I’ll keep an eye on him.”  
The guard craned his neck to look at Travis. “High Priest, are you sure? A prisoner in your room- and one so powerful, at that… perhaps a guard should stay, just in-”  
“And you’d be willing to intrude on the High Priest while he’s sleeping because you don’t trust he can watch a chained, unarmed prisoner?” It wasn’t a question, not really- it was a dare, a biting statement of ‘just try and argue with me, see what happens to you’.  
“...of course, High Priest. Have a good night.” The guard was out of the door before Travis could blink- and as soon as he was, the prisoner let out a faint chuckle.

“What’s so funny?”  
“Nothing, nothing.” Travis stifled his laughter as it died down. “So, just you and me for the night. Aren’t you worried I’ll attack you?” It was a genuine question, but he smirked as he asked it, letting it come out as a flirtatious threat.  
“Of course not.” The reply was cold and direct. “I have no reason to be worried. You are more than securely chained, and I am more than capable of self-defence.”  
Travis nodded slightly. “Yeah, I hope so. If you weren’t, then storming the home of a Demon Warlock and his son and expecting a win was… well, I don’t want to call you foolish, but…”  
Zane didn’t respond for a moment, instead heading into his baths and shutting the door behind him. He was still audible through the wall- “You don’t have to. We were more than prepared for our attack, even considering the circumstances.”  
“What circumstances?” Travis replied, and soon realised he’d have to speak up to be heard through the wall. “What sort of circumstances?”  
“Well, we didn’t know you were there. We merely seized the opportunity. Don’t worry about your previous engagements with the Demon Warlock, by the way- a group of highly-trained soldiers are defending the tribe in your absence. We came to the realisation that he wasn’t as accommodating as the tribe believed while getting you to the boat.”  
Well, that was a relief, at least. If the people on his island had died… well, even if they’d sold him out, he didn’t want them dead. “Good to know. Though… how’d you get off the island? Normally anyone who gets on can’t leave- at least, not easily.”  
“Well, That was easy. Once the Demon Warlock was aware we were removing you from the island, we left without much hesitation.” Zane returned from the bathroom, clad in much less priestly clothing- a simple loose shirt and pants, though his mask remained on. “The sea was only as difficult as any other sea. Clearly whatever let us enter was worth less than the lessening of attacks from you.”  
“...fair enough.” It was a fairly good tradeoff- removing him in exchange for a few soldiers. Travis only hoped they were as good at defence. It was somewhat worrying, but if these were the same people who helped to kidnap him, he was sure they’d handle it.

A quiet yawn escaped the priest as he approached his bed. “Well, I bid you goodnight, Travis- and hope that we can find you a room in the dungeon soon.”  
Travis’ head shot up. “Hey, no- you’ve got me set up in here now, you can’t just change it like that.” Being yanked from his home was one thing, but being shoved down into the dungeon too?  
There was hesitation from Zane, and he stopped in place to think at the end of his bed. “...I suppose it would be a hassle on the guards. Very well, you can stay here. Just… don’t be a nuisance.”  
Travis breathed a soft sigh of relief as he sank further into chair. “You got it.” It was better than a dungeon, at least- even if he had to deal with Zane. “Night night then, High Priest. Be careful,” and he bared his teeth with a smile, “you never know when a demon might be about to trouble your dreams.”  
The curtains dividing the bed and the rest of the room shut with a soft whoosh, and a faint ‘ugh’ came from behind them. Travis sighed under his breath and adjusted his position on the chair, curling up in it and pulling up the blanket laid over him. It wasn’t the most comfortable, but it functioned fine, and as he let sleep take him over, he couldn’t help but think that things could be a lot worse.


	2. A Priest, Of All People

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Travis’ time in O’khasis grows increasingly worse, as it becomes increasingly clear that Zane possesses more social power than he realised- and some very irritable guards.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don’t expect all updates to come out weekly, y’all, this is just because I’m on break right now. I’ve got the chapters drafted for a while now, though, and I’m really getting into this, so hopefully that should keep me on track. Hope you all enjoy! It’s currently very early and I’m very tired.

Things got a lot worse the next morning.

The day had _started_ alright, which almost made it worse. Travis had woken up at the crack of dawn, which wasn’t unlike him, though the feeling of waking up bound in chains was an odd one. Zane was up not long after him, and muttering something about time and schedules as he got ready. Then the guards returned, and Travis was unchained long enough to get ready- which wasn’t long, but it was relieving to be free of those chains, if only for a few minutes.

Zane’s bathing quarters really were huge- absurdly so, Travis thought, even for who he was. Still, he wasn’t complaining about it. It was a bit refreshing to get properly clean in such a huge room. The guards even ended up bringing him some fresh clothes; they were high quality too, with soft fabrics and neat patterns. They felt like something a noble would wear. 

It was when he left the bathroom that the problems started to become evident.

“-leave him in here!” Zane hissed at the guard as Travis exited, still half-awed at the clothing he’d been given.  
“But- High Priest-!”  
“Under no circumstances are you leaving him in _my room_ during the day! He can come with us, so long as he behaves, and if not he can be guarded in the dungeons. It doesn’t matter if they’re full, he can just stand in the hallway or something.” There was a clear fury in Zane’s voice, but also a tinge of panic, and he kept glancing between the window and the door.  
The guard opposing Zane’s plans was, in all honesty, clearly regretting it- his whole body seemed to be trembling as he protested. “But sir, he’s far too powerful for us to sufficiently guard if he’s not either in a cell or chained up here!”  
“Is it not your job to guard people?!” Zane spat back, shaking his head. “We don’t have time for this, I’m going to be late!”

“You know, I-”  
Travis was cut off by the guard’s sword pressing against his chest.  
Zane gave a loud sigh and shoved the guard’s sword away. “Put it down, you imbecile, and let him speak.”  
Travis raised an eyebrow at the priest, but continued nonetheless. “I wouldn’t mind going with you. Saves me being cooped up in here.” He gestured around the room. “I mean, a bored demon is probably more of a threat than a demon that steps into public for a few hours.” He hated bringing up his demonic nature, really, but if it gave him some time outside for even a few hours...  
Zane nodded. “Then it’s settled. You will come with us into the city. Any misbehaviour, however,” and he locked eyes with Travis, “and orders will be to kill you on the spot.”  
“Done.” Travis let his smirk creep back into his expression.  
“Very well. Anthony?” The guard- Anthony, apparently- flinched as Zane addressed him. “You’ll be babysitting him. Holding his chains, ensuring he doesn’t get up to anything.”  
Anthony’s protesting noise faded out as soon as Zane narrowed his eyes, and he instead gave a defeated nod. “Yes, High Priest.”  
The guard approached Travis with a clear reluctance, holding out the chains with shaking hands. Travis pulled his wrists together with a mocking smile, watching as the guard fumbled with the handcuffs-

And then pulling backwards, yanking his hands free from Anthony’s grasp with a soft gasp. Zane’s one visible eye went wide as Travis stared him down, now unbound and free to move as he wanted.  
Zane took a shaky step back, and Travis couldn’t help but smile. God, Zane wasn’t prepared for this. At all. He’d not expected any sort of resistance. It was almost comical.  
“I’m leaving,” Travis growled, stepping over Anthony and heading towards the floor. Zane said nothing.  
And as soon as he opened the door, it was clear why. 

A second guard was stood just outside the door, another set of chains in her hands. Travis’ smile dropped as she grabbed his wrists and clicked them into the handcuffs, and then turned him towards Zane.  
It was clear he was grinning, even with the mask- his eye told everything Travis needed to know.  
“Clever, Travis. But not clever enough- though I appreciate the effort, it was... amusing to watch. Well done, Sara,” Zane added, turning his attention to the guard. “You’ll be accompanying us too, of course- give Anthony someone to fall back on should he prove himself incompetent again.”  
“Of course,” the guard replied as she moved Travis’ chains to one hand and pulled Anthony up from the floor with the other. He had a hand to his forehead, and was muttering something that Travis could only assume he’d be offended by if he’d heard.  
“Well, is that all? Or would you like to make another break for it, Travis?” He wasn’t sure if the priest’s tone was mocking or actually joking.  
Travis gave a soft sigh, then a smile. “Nah, I think I’m good. Let’s just go.”  
Zane gave a small nod, and made his way out, Anthony and Sara soon pulling Travis along with them.

~~~~~~~~~~  
O’khasis was massive.  
That wasn’t just from Travis’ knowledge of places as someone who’d lived on an island for years, that was objective. The place was huge, and bustling too- absolutely filled with people. Even though people seemed to be making way for Zane, it still became hard to see through the sheer amount of people around. This wasn’t helped by the fact that the guards insisted on following Zane at a distance- Travis wasn’t ever told why, but it was clear that a priest wandering around with a prisoner would raise a few red flags. 

The buildings around them seemed to tower over them, taller than any buildings Travis had encountered. They were well-made, too, and oddly beautiful for what he’d been told wasn’t the best part of town. He could only imagine what that looked like.  
Still, there was one thing that made the social status of this area at least a little clearer.  
The pathways.  
Travis had tripped at least four times- not counting one, which he swore Sara tugged on the chains to cause- and he was starting to regret the high-brow shoes he’d been given; they were very nice, yes, but clearly not made for anything more than relatively smooth floors. This was large chunks of cobblestone and dirt, and he was pretty sure that said dirt wouldn’t come out easily. Not that that was his most pressing concern, but he still had a degree of pity for whatever poor soul had that job. They probably didn’t get paid nearly enough.

They’d gone around the back to enter the building Zane had to be at, and Travis couldn’t quite tell what it was from this angle. It was a lot bigger than the rest of the area’s buildings, for sure, with a tall tower at the end they’d reached, and even more elegant than the rest of the area. But that could mean any number of things. As they approached the door, Zane turned to him with a genuine worry in his look.  
“Okay, I know I said it earlier, but I mean it now. Best behaviour in here. You’re going to sit quietly in the hall, do nothing to cause a fuss, and when we get back and you’re chained up you can be as vulgar and disruptive as you wish.”  
Travis stared Zane down as he set out his demands, and there was definitely something riding on this- otherwise he wouldn’t be so stressed. He gave a small nod. “Fine. But only until we’re back. Then you can’t stop me,” he added, with a small smirk.

Zane breathed a sigh of relief, and returned the nod. “Thank you.” He pushed open the door, leading into a small room that seemed to lead into a much bigger one. The guards pulled Travis forward as Zane stepped to the side. “Now, let’s-“

Travis recoiled as he stepped into the building, giving a loud yelp and pulling away from the guards to get back into the outdoors. Zane’s eye widened slightly as one of the guards tried to pull him back in. “Not this time, you-!”  
“I can’t go in there!” Travis stamped the foot that had made contact with the building’s floorboards on the ground, as if putting out a small fire. “That floor, it burns!”

Zane seemed to hesitate for a moment, glancing at Travis and then the building. “...of course… Sara, Anthony, wait out here with him.”  
“But sir-!” Sara began to protest.  
Zane cut her off with a sharp glare. “Trust me. He’s not lying. Demons, and thus probably half-demons, can’t step on consecrated ground.”

...oh. Consecrated ground, of course. Zane was a priest, and so...  
“What day is it?” Travis’ question came out quiet.  
Zane gave a soft sigh, almost looking… embarrassed. “The day of our Lady Irene. And this,” and he gestured towards the building, “is one of her temples. Holy ground. A place you can’t enter without being in, well… that degree of pain. A seemingly obvious oversight now… Sara, Anthony, I’ll be back in an hour or so. Keep an eye on him, and make sure he doesn’t step inside.” 

The two guards nodded in seeming unison as Zane headed inside, leaving the door open behind him and heading into the main room. From here, Travis found he could both see and hear the service- not clearly, but well enough. He couldn’t help but listen in as Zane started to talk- there wasn’t much else to do, and Sara and Anthony didn’t seem interested in discussion. It was actually somewhat fascinating to listen to- Travis had never been around followers of Irene, and definitely not to this extent. He’d read the books on it, of course, but this was… something else. Zane had a certain edge to his voice, a draw that said ‘listen to me’- and it worked. There was nothing but silence from the others in the temple as he spoke, and there was clear charisma in everything he was saying. Travis couldn’t quite hear what exactly was being said from this far away, but even then he felt himself sucked in to whatever Zane was going on about. His voice was… enthralling. It was the kind of voice you just couldn’t stop listening to- and suddenly a priest being allowed to have soldiers and freedom to go to Gal’ruk (of all places) made sense. He was a talker. He could open his mouth and get whatever he wanted.  
It was impressive. Zane, as much as Travis hated to admit it, was impressive, even if it was in his ability to manipulate and charm.

The service seemed to go a lot faster than Zane had implied it would- or maybe it just felt fast. After what felt like no more than half an hour, Zane was returning- and his hands were full. Three small glasses were clutched in between his fingers on one hand, and three small discs of wafer were in the palm of his other hand. One was set just off from the other two, and Zane gestured to it to the best of his ability as he held them out to Travis. “Take the one closest to my wrist, we didn’t actually use it in the ceremony so it’s safe for you.”  
Eyebrow raised, Travis picked up the small wafer and observed it. “...why?”  
“It’s a symbol of faith to Irene,” and Zane gave a slight smile, “though I suppose you could dedicate it to any god you wish. I wouldn’t wish for you to miss out just because you were being held prisoner- we offer as much to all our other prisoners too, it’s required by the city’s laws.”  
Travis couldn’t help but think that the last part was the actual ‘why’, but he wasn’t complaining- he’d never seen anything like this on his island, and even if the circumstances weren’t ideal, perhaps it would be okay to at least try. A quiet sigh escaped him as he popped the wafer into his mouth.  
Well, it wasn’t big on taste, but he hadn’t exactly expected it to be- and it did feel kind of nice to be along part. The two guards took their own wafers and ate them, and then Zane held out the little glasses- first to his guards, and then to Travis. Travis gave a nod of gratitude and let the wine in the glass travel down his throat, a sort of fuzzy feeling starting to grow in his chest.

And then burn, all the way up his throat.  
A spluttering cough escaped his mouth and he heard the glass he’d been holding shatter against the cobbles, frantic choking noises all he could produce. His focus darted up to Zane as the priest’s eye went wide and he glanced between his guards in panic and fury.  
“What- but I-! Get him back to my quarters, NOW!”  
Tears welled up in Travis’ eyes as the burning in his throat worsened, as if flames had illuminated his insides. He felt the guard to his left- which one had that been?- scoop him up into their arms as his eyes started to flicker shut. A few moments of writhing was all he could muster before his eyes drooped closed.

Yeah, it hadn’t been a good day. Not at all.

~~~~~~~~~~

When Travis finally woke back up, he could hardly move. His body felt weak, weaker than it had been in a while, and there was a sort of ingrained tiredness to his mind. His eyelids felt far too heavy, but he slowly forced them open-  
And almost immediately met Zane’s gaze.  
The priest was sitting on his bed and staring directly at him, the look in his eye unidentifiable but deeply tired. “Oh, you’re awake. And alive, thank goodness. You’d been out for a few hours, it had grown concerning. We can’t have you dying on my watch- not here.” The priest got to his feet, setting down the book he’d been reading. “You’ll be glad to hear we worked out what happened- a mishap over the glasses ended up with you getting one that had been blessed. A simple mistake, but one that won’t happen again.” There was a definitive edge to his voice as he crossed the room, pointedly avoiding any further eye contact with Travis.

“...bullshit…”  
Zane froze as Travis finally spoke up, voice hoarse. “...what do you mean?”  
“One of you… tried to kill me…” A fit of coughs erupted from Travis’ throat, and he attempted to raise a hand to his mouth to cover it, only to find his body once again bound.  
Zane simply remained stood in the centre of the room for a moment before giving a slight nod. “...you’re correct. Sara-” he almost spat the name, “-felt it was appropriate to take matters into her own hands and deal with you herself. She won’t make the same mistake again, I assure you.” There was that cutting tone again, the one that meant business. Travis shuddered to think what might have happened to her- even if she’d made an attempt on his life. “Your demise is… not something I desire. You could be of use to me.”  
“I don’t intend on being of any use to you,” Travis snarled, the effect almost completely lost to his hoarse voice.  
Zane chuckled slightly at that. “Your resolve is admirable, Travis. I can’t wait to see it shatter.” And with that, Zane was gone, out the door before Travis could respond. 

Prick.  
Travis wiggled around in his chains for a moment, giving a fed-up sigh. They were… significantly loosened this time, and simply only wound around the chair- and as he unwound it, he found he could move a few feet in each direction away from the chair. Of course, the chair had been moved too, so he couldn’t reach anything of importance, but he could at least move. There was also a small plate nearby- fruit, and a small glass of water. Travis… didn’t actually remember having eaten since he got here, aside from the fiasco of the wafer and wine. Huh. Well, he wasn’t one to complain, and the fruit and water were gone before he could even check they weren’t blessed- which, luckily, they weren’t. Beyond that though, there wasn’t much to do, besides stare out the window and think- and think Travis did. 

His mind travelled to his home island, a certain sort of contentment crossing his mind as he remembered Zane’s actions to keep the tribe safe from the Demon Warlock- a contentment that soon turned to hollow sadness. Even so, his home was… gone. Burned to the ground, along with all his books and belongings- and anything he’d brought with him was god-knows-where, considering he hadn’t kept it in the kidnapping. O’khasis was nice and all, but he’d much preferred his home- it felt safer, less likely to poison him with blessed wine or burn his feet with consecrated ground. He still couldn’t get over that he was being held captive by a high priest- he’d made jokes about it at Zane’s expense, and it was sort of funny that it was him and not a monarch or guard, but there was a lingering feeling that everything around him could kill him if he wasn’t careful. Nothing felt safe, nothing felt okay, it was all foreign and dangerous and wrong…

And yet, something about it was…

It didn’t matter. He was being held captive here, with a priest who wanted him to break and guards who wanted him dead. He didn’t know if Zane’s forces were actually protecting his island, he didn’t know what Zane wanted him for, he didn’t even know why Zane hadn’t killed him already. It was terrifying. Every last bit about it.

God, what Travis wouldn’t give to get out of here.

But, he had no opportunity to do that now. He needed to bide his time, keep looking for escapes where he could. The window was plan A, currently, but he needed a way out of these chains first. He gave a quiet groan and returned to the chair, letting himself curl up on the soft fabric. He could think straighter after sleeping a little, even if the sun was only just going down. This whole ordeal was… exhausting, in so many ways.


	3. Excuse Me, Have You Heard The Good Word Of Our Lords And Saviours, The Divine Warriors?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Travis and Zane discuss names, patterns, and the Divine Warriors. Zane somehow is a dick about all three.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Do you hear that?  
That’s the sound of the alarm bells going off in my head because I’ve not updated yet.  
(And also probably Infinite’s theme on repeat. Off-topic, but Sonic Forces’ soundtrack is so good.)
> 
> Anyway, sorry this is so late!!! Getting back into the swing of school has been a trip in and of itself, and besides that I’ve been sick for a good few weeks now. Getting better now though! It’s been a trip. This chapter’s a little shorter than the first two- don’t really have many ideas for this one, but things do kick into a higher gear next chapter, so. Yay? For us at least. Hope you like this regardless!

When Travis woke the next morning, Zane was already up and active, reading a book at his desk with a deep frown. The priest wasn’t dressed in the fancy outfit he’d been frequenting this far- which Travis wasn’t complaining about, the bright white did only serve as a reminder of who he was being held captive by. Instead, he looked a lot more casual- a simple shirt and pants, with the mask over his face made of a softer and more comfortable fabric. Travis raised an eyebrow at the priest with a bemused smile. “Up early?”

Zane startled slightly at the sudden noise, his body seeming to tense up, but it only lasted for a moment before his cold and calm demeanour returned to him. “Yes, indeed. Early morning reading always seems to be the most efficient for me. What does it matter to you?”  
“Just interested, is all. You’re kind of the only person I have to talk to. Well, you and the guards, but they hardly seem like the type to hold a conversation.”  
Zane have a soft chuckle. “I can imagine they’re not. You’re half demon, after all- I can imagine they’re rather afraid of you.”

Travis flinched back sinking further into the chair. “...guess so.” Not that he needed reminding. He almost thought he saw… confusion of some kind cross Zane’s face, but it was hardly worth addressing. No, he didn’t want to talk about that- anything else would be okay, but… not that. “So what are you researching?”  
Zane gave an amused hum as he adjusted the book so Travis could see. “The history of the Divine Warriors. One has to know the reason he does his job, after all.” The page itself was beautifully illustrated, the page on the left an intricate illustration of Lady Irene and the one on the right a dense and detailed tale involving her- Travis couldn’t quite see it all from here, but it looked to mention her repeatedly. He clambered out of his seat and took a few steps closer, approaching until his chains reached their full length. “The Divine Warriors? You have information on them?” He craned his neck to get a proper look at the book. Perhaps the people here knew more of the Divine Warriors than they did at home- it would likely be an amazing furthering of the collective knowledge to combine the two, and-!  
No, he had to stay calm. He was a prisoner here- these people clearly weren’t much for sharing.  
“Ah, unfortunately not as much as I’d desire,” Zane sighed with a frown. “I would love to know more of them, their lives and powers, but alas those things were rarely recorded… a way of defending themselves, I’m sure, but… disappointing nonetheless.”  
“So you’ve encountered the same problem here as on the island then,” Travis mused with a frown as he squinted at the book.   
“Oh?” Zane’s voice was filled with surprise, to say the least, and a tinge of something Travis couldn’t place. “Your island is knowledgeable on the Divine Warriors too?”  
“I guess so…” Travis shrugged slightly. “I mean, it’s the island of Enki, so there’s a lot of books and the like kept there for preservation and research- or there were,” he added, narrowing his eyes at Zane. “Your soldiers burned it all.”

A look of panic and shock flashed behind Zane’s eye and he scrambled to his feet. “They what?!”  
Travis felt his eyes narrow further. “Yeah, your soldiers burned down my house with all of my stuff inside. As well as my knowledge on the Divine Warriors.”  
“But- they- you- oh, they- UGH!” Zane slammed his fist down on the desk, sending Travis recoiling back. “Such valuable information lost! Do they never listen?! Why, I…”

A quiet fell over him. “...I can resolve that later. For now, the books I already have will suffice.” He seemed to hesitate for a moment as he slumped back into his chair, and then spoke up again. “And should you wish to study any of those books as well, you are more than welcome to.”  
Travis’ eyes lit up. “You- what?! Why?”  
“Because of that,” Zane replied, gesturing in Travis’ direction. “You share an interest in the Divine Warriors, and have knowledge of them that I may not yet possess. Perhaps you will spot things I will miss.”  
“Well, three eyes are better than one,” Travis shot back with a smirk, earning him a warning glare from Zane’s cold blue eye. “But… yeah, that’d be nice. A break from the nothing, at least.”  
Zane gave a small nod and crossed the room, plucking a collection of books and papers from his shelves before placing them down next to Travis. “These should be a good starting point for you- feel free to inform me if you’d prefer some denser material. I’ve made annotations where I can, and- oh, you’ll need this.” A feathered pen and small container of ink were placed next to the stack of literature. “Feel free to make or correct any annotations you wish, I’ll pick up on them the next time I read through them.”  
“Fine by me.” Travis couldn’t help but smile as he picked up the first book- one he didn’t recognise, with an inky blue cover and a writer he’d never seen- and dipped the feather into the ink. 

The next few hours seemed to go by surprisingly quickly- the two worked in near-silence, only ever speaking up to voice a disagreement or matter of confusion. The conversations had remained strictly academic at the start, but slowly devolved into genuine curiosities, primarily still aimed at the work at hand. Such questions as-

“So why do you study the Divine Warriors?”   
Well, it didn’t feel like an actual question when Zane asked it- more of a demand to know.  
Travis gave a faint chuckle. “Well, I’m not really sure. Think it’s mainly from where I was raised, and by who… my mother was, let’s just say, more than a little interested in them.” He felt a smile creep onto his face, a stark contrast to the dull ache in his heart. “And, um- what about you? What do you find so interesting about them?”

Zane seemed to hesitate for a moment, then shake his head. “I… have a certain interest in the powers of Lady Irene. What they were, how they were used, why she possessed them; I wish to know all I can about them. And to do that, I must know all I can about Irene herself. The other Divine Warriors are, of course, fascinating, and offer a sort of comparison point for Irene, but she is my main focus. Although, perhaps it is because I am a product of my career and region,” he added with a hint of a smile in his eye.

Travis gave an understanding nod, glancing down at his book again and tapping a specific paragraph with the tip of his pen. “Well, if it helps, I think one of your annotations is wrong. Or at the very least a flawed assumption.”  
“Oh?” There was an undercurrent of danger to Zane’s voice, but as he turned he seemed genuinely curious as to what Travis meant. “Which annotation is that?”  
“Chapter nineteen of this book.” Travis held up the leather-bound book he was holding. “I think it’s a retelling of a memory, not a separate event- it matches up with earlier information, and it flows more reasonably that way.”  
Zane glanced up from his book with a small smile, peering over at Travis and his book. A few soft mumbles left his mouth, muffled by his mask as he moved his pen in the air before nodding. “Oh! I hadn’t thought of that, but you could be-”  
And within what felt like a split-second, he’d jumped to his feet.  
Travis felt his head jerk towards Zane as the priest grabbed his chin and forced him to make eye contact, a look of wonder and confusion on his face.  
“Your skin- is it scarred? I hadn’t spotted it earlier, perhaps the sunlight or... I don’t know- did one of the guards do it? After Sara, I’d assumed that- Who was it, I’ll have them-!“  
“Hey, wait, no!” Travis pulled away, hands to his face. “I was born with it. I’m surprised you didn’t notice sooner, you spend enough time glaring at me.” The last statement came out a lot sharper than he’d anticipated, but he wasn’t going to lie and say it wasn’t a sore spot.

Zane gave an indignant huff. “Indeed- your skin is the least of my concern...” His eye travelled to the gaps in Travis’ gloves- yes, there were the same lighter patches there. Perhaps he’d not been paying the attention he’d thought… They popped up on his neck too, large patches of pale white amidst a medium tan. Even with Travis’ hands over his face, he could see the patches on the sides too- they seemed primarily focused on his nose and mouth, but small areas seemed disconnected from the others, forming small dots of white on the man’s cheeks and jawline. They seemed to stretch below his clothes too, and up into his hair... how quaint. Zane felt an odd smile seep onto his face as he tracked the edges of the patches, weaving and arcing up and down, leaving fascinating patterns of colour on his skin-  
“Stop staring at me.” Travis’ voice, firm and yet filled with fury, brought him back to his senses, and he pulled his eyes away from the patches.   
“Of course. I wouldn’t want to upset you- then I’d have to deal with you for the rest of the day while you sulked.” Zane thought he heard an abrupt sound of laughter, albeit one that barely lasted more than a second… then silence. A deep, almost unbreakable-feeling silence, one that was far more uncomfortable to be stuck in than the day’s natural ones.

“...do you have a last name, Travis?”

The question was abrupt, almost jarringly so- but it was something else to focus on. “...Valkrum.”  
“Ah,” Zane murmured, giving a small nod. “I don’t believe I’ve ever heard that one before.”  
“Don’t think I’ve ever heard Ro’Meave before.” Travis wasn’t lying on that- it wasn’t exactly a common last name.  
“I- Well, I suppose you wouldn’t have, having grown up elsewhere. Had you been born in O’khasis or a neighbouring land, it would be a different story.” Zane seemed to almost chuckle. “The Ro’Meaves are the most powerful family in the area, after all.”  
...that actually explained a lot, Travis realised. “Impressive- so that’s why you expected me to recognise it, then?”  
“Ah… well, yes.” Zane gave an almost sheepish nod. “I suppose it is understandable that the name does not quite reach overseas as of yet.”

“Mhm… so you said family, right? Not just you with the influence- you said you were the second son of O’khasis’ lord?”  
Zane seemed hesitant at that, but nodded. “Yes, my father is the city’s current lord. Garte, as you’ll be expected to know. Unfortunately,” and the word didn’t come across as genuine at all, “my elder brother is deceased, allegedly, making me next in line.”  
Travis raised an eyebrow. “Not to pry, but… allegedly?”  
“It’s of no concern to you,” Zane’s reply came, a degree of sharpness to it. “I’m more than aware of your familial situation, I wouldn’t ask further.”  
That same cold pang in Travis’ chest resurged, along with a degree of anger. He didn’t know how much Zane knew, but that comment was enough to annoy. Whether he knew the whole truth or not, Travis’ family was his business. Not some priest’s- and certainly not as a conversational diversion.“...no need to be a dick about it, but yeah.”  
“Hm? What was that, Valkrum?” Zane’s tone was icy, but there was a fiery anger buried beneath it. God, he should have never told Zane his last name. That was going to be lorded over him for the rest of the time he was here.  
“Nothing,” and he felt a mocking courtesy creep into his voice without his prompting, “High Priest Zane, Second Son to Garte of O’Khasis. Wouldn’t want to bother you with it.”

Zane’s whole body seemed to go rigid, and for a moment Travis was half convinced he would burst into flames. The priest stared Travis down, a fury and insult in his eyes greater than ever before. Their eyes remained locked on each other for what felt like hours-  
And then Zane turned away, a loud huffing breath coming from behind his mask. “Don’t play games with me, Valkrum. Remember your place.”  
His place. Travis was half tempted to spit at the man. God, how could one man be so infuriating, so degrading, so… so…!

It wasn’t worth thinking about. Any major outburst would probably get him killed, or worse… best to just sit and work. For now, at least.

The rest of the day was spent in near-silence, only the faint sounds of pen scratching and page flipping indicating the room was inhabited at all. Then, as the sun started to set, Zane packed up his books and placed them back on the bookshelves without a word. That was almost worse than the silence before, Travis thought- not to mention that he’d just scooped up Travis’ own books and placed them back with the same cold silence. Soon, everything was packed away, and Zane was behind his curtain again, leaving Travis to curl up in his chair. God, what a fucking asshole, Travis had half a mind to get out of these chains and-!

“My remark on your family was made in poor taste, Valkrum. I… I apologise. Today has… not been my best for tact.”

Oh.  
Travis almost flinched at the sudden statement, and the confusing point it made. Zane didn’t seem like the kind to apologise… Maybe he was lying, just trying to weasel his way out of the problem so he could easier get to Travis.  
And yet, he’d sounded more genuine than ever.

“...you too. The apology, I mean.”

He almost thought he heard a small ‘hm?’ from behind the curtain, but it was just faint enough that it was probably the curtains shifting. “...of course. I accept your apology.”

Travis couldn’t help but smile, turning over on his chair. Eh, maybe the guy wasn’t so bad. Overall he was still a kidnapping monster, but on a personal level, he at least seemed capable of showing regret for being a douchebag. Maybe it was all to serve his own nefarious purposes, but it was still a good deed, and-

“You know, Valkrum, I truly believe that you could be of use to O’Khasis, I-”  
“Aaaand you’ve ruined it. Never in a million years, Ro’Meave.”  
“You’ll change your mind one day, Valkrum,” came the reply, that same sweet poison to Zane’s voice. “I’m certain.”  
“When pigs fly.”  
A soft chuckle. “Goodnight, Valkrum.”  
“...night, Priest.”

Travis curled up further in his chair, letting a quiet yawn escape him. Whether Zane was an alright dude or not, he didn’t want to be here. Being cooped up in this room wasn’t good for him- both physically and mentally. He could almost feel the negative energy clouding around him, like a fog creeping in on the horizon.  
All he could hope was that it faded soon, or he wasn’t sure what would happen to him. Especially here, who knows how the people of O’Khasis would react. And Zane- wel, Zane was a high priest, it was pretty clear how he’d respond.

No, no, he could keep a handle on it.  
It would be okay.  
He’d make sure of it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just to make it clear because ambiguous medieval times had a little less terminology than us- Travis has vitiligo! It’s less distinct because he has it on already light skin, but it is there. I don’t really have a reason behind this, I just saw a post talking about lighter-skinned people with vitiligo and thought it could be cool. Also because I originally wanted to have a sort of half-demon vitiligo Travis, but couldn’t find any reason for him to be between the two in the fanfic (and also figured it would be harder to explain), so it ended up as regular human vitiligo and his normal separate demon form.


End file.
